What is it?
There’s an impressive 250 years (and counting) of history in the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, but they’re also paving the way for the future with not one, but two national bases for research into botanical studies. While you’re strolling through the Victorian Palm House or seeking out the luscious flora (including the giant, stinking Titan Arum in the Princess of Wales Conservatory), scientists are working away in offices and laboratories behind the scenes.
Nowadays the Gardens stand at a whopping 300 acres, but they started out a little more humbly in the backyard of what was once the royal palace – favoured most by George III. There’s loads to see here, whether you like green stuff or not. Why not take a trip to the Treetop Walkway? At 18 metres high, this trek through the leaves offers fab views of the grounds. Or, stroll down to the Chinese Pagoda, which was built in 1762 and towers over the southern end of the Gardens.
Given the exceptional upkeep and wide variety of fauna, you’re sure to be inspired. And if the plants aren’t doing the trick, try seeking out the sculptures, which feature Henry Moore’s ‘Reclining Mother and Child’ in a stunning setting that changes with the light of each season. In fact, the art alone could take up your entire visit – see the Eduardo Paolozzi sculpture ‘A Maximis Ad Minima’ and visit the Marianne North Gallery and the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art, all included in the main entry price. Whenever you visit Kew Gardens, there’s something in bloom.
Why go?
This world-leading botanic garden is captivating at any time of year, whether it’s to see its vibrant flower beds in the spring and summer, russet trees in the autumn or its light shows and hot house lates in the colder months.
Don’t miss:
The grand Victorian glasshouses remain a favourite with visitors, with the Temperate House holding the record for the largest surviving Victorian glasshouse. Inside each of them, the climate is maintained to nurture everything from the world’s largest water lilies to delicate Alpine flowers to tropical blooms and even the encephalartos woodii, one of the rarest plants in the world that’s outlived the dinosaurs.
When to visit:
April 1-Aug 31: Mon-Fri 10am-7pm, Sat, Sun and bank holidays 10am-8pm; Sep: 1-30 daily 10am-7pm; Oct 1-28 daily 10am-6pm; Oct 29-Nov 13, daily 10am-4pm; Nov 14-Jan 7, daily, 10am-3pm; Jan 8-31, 10am-4pm; Feb 1-29, daily 10am-5pm; Mar 1-31, daily 10am-6pm. Closed Dec 24 and 25. (Last entry 30 minutes before closing, some attractions close earlier, check on arrival.)
Ticketing info:
Peak season (1 Feb to 31 Oct): Online weekdays £20, weekends and bank holidays £22; At the gate; weekdays £22, weekends and bank holidays £24. Off peak (1 Nov to 31 Jan): Online weekdays £12, weekends and bank holidays £14; At the gate weekdays £14, weekends and bank holidays £16.
Time Out tip:
There’s so much to see at Kew, but it really is worth visiting the extraordinary Marianne North Gallery. Not only is the building a beautifully tiled piece of Victorian architecture, but the whole place is lined with over 800 of North’s colourful paintings of flowers, landscapes, animals and birds. I’m breath-taken on every visit and it’s always a pleasure to hear North’s story, who was decades ahead of her time intrepidly travelling the world solo to record the tropical and exotic plants that captivated her.
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